- Kendrick Lamar now holds the record for the most Grammy Awards won by a rapper, with 27 victories from 66 nominations.
- The Compton-born artist swept every major rap category at the 2026 Grammy Awards, including Best Rap Album for GNX.
- Lamar surpassed Jay-Z’s long-standing total of 25 Grammy wins and now sits among the most awarded artists in music history.
- With only a handful of legends ahead of him, Kendrick Lamar is no longer chasing rap records—he’s chasing all-time Grammy history.
At this point, Kendrick Lamar isn’t competing with other rappers anymore—he’s competing with history. Every time the Compton lyricist steps onto a Grammy stage, another record seems to fall. What once looked like the career of a critically acclaimed rapper has quietly become one of the most decorated runs in music history, regardless of genre.
That reputation reached another milestone at the 2026 Grammy Awards, and this year Lamar walked away with 5 trophies, including Best Rap Album (GNX), Best Rap Song (tv off), Best Melodic Rap Performance (luther), Best Rap Performance (Chains & Whips with Clipse), and Record of the Year (luther). The haul pushed his career total to 27 Grammy Awards, officially moving him ahead of Jay-Z’s 25 and giving him more Grammy wins than any rapper in history. Not bad for an artist who collected his first Grammy trophies just 11 years ago for “I”.
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With these rewards, Kendrick Lamar could place himself in exclusive company, alongside only a handful of artists in Grammy history who have won more awards, including Quincy Jones, Chick Corea, Sir Georg Solti, and Beyoncé.
Considering he’s still releasing chart-topping music and collecting trophies at a remarkable pace, and who knows, he could even climb higher, but only time can tell. Before looking ahead, it’s worth taking a look back at Grammy’s journey that brought him here, from breakthrough victories and unforgettable performances.
Kendrick Lamar’s journey to winning 27 Grammy Awards was not as simple as it seems. Today, people count his trophies and assume the Recording Academy has always recognized his greatness, but longtime fans know that’s far from the truth. While Lamar won his first Grammys in 2015 for “I”, he had already made a name for himself as one of hip-hop’s most important voices with “good kid”, “m.A.A.d city”. After that, albums like “To Pimp a Butterfly”, “DAMN.”, “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” and “GNX” kept adding to his total, turning him from a praised rapper into a regular Grammy winner. Along the way, he became the first artist to receive Album of the Year nominations for five consecutive studio albums and built an impressive record of 27 wins from 66 nominations.
What’s even more surprising is that his total could have been higher. Hip-hop fans still remember the 2014 Grammy Awards, when Lamar came in with seven nominations but left without any wins. The biggest surprise was when “good kid”, “m.A.A.d city” lost Best Rap Album to Macklemore’s “The Heist”, beating albums from Kendrick, Drake, Jay-Z, and Kanye West. This sparked a lot of debate, and Macklemore later shared a text he sent Lamar, admitting Kendrick deserved the award. Looking back, it feels like a strange moment in Grammy history.
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With 66 Grammy nominations and 27 wins, from his first Grammy wins for “i” in 2015 to his record-breaking success at the 2026 ceremony, Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy record is one of the most impressive in modern music.
His latest victories at the 2026 Grammy Awards pushed him past Jay-Z to become the most decorated rapper ever. The achievement also places him alongside music legends such as Alison Krauss and John Williams, who share the fifth spot on the all-time Grammy winners list.
Here’s a complete look at every Grammy Award Kendrick Lamar has won throughout his career:
- 68th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2026)
- Record Of The Year: “Luther” (Kendrick Lamar & SZA)
- Best Rap Album: GNX
- Best Rap Song: “TV OFF” (Kendrick Lamar featuring Lefty Gunplay)
- Best Melodic Rap Performance: “Luther” (Kendrick Lamar & SZA)
- Best Rap Performance: “Chains & Whips” (Clipse featuring Kendrick Lamar)
- 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2025)
- Record Of The Year: “Not Like Us”
- Song Of The Year: “Not Like Us”
- Best Rap Performance: “Not Like Us”
- Best Rap Song: “Not Like Us”
- Best Music Video: “Not Like Us”
- 65th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2023)
- Best Rap Album: “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers”
- Best Rap Performance: “The Heart Part 5”
- Best Rap Song: “The Heart Part 5”
- 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2022)
- Best Rap Performance: “Family Ties” (Baby Keem Featuring Kendrick Lamar)
- 61st Annual GRAMMY Awards (2019)
- Best Rap Performance: “King’s Dead” (Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock, Future & James Blake)
- 60th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2018)
- Best Rap Album: “DAMN.”
- Best Rap Performance: “HUMBLE.”
- Best Rap Song: “HUMBLE.”
- Best Music Video: “HUMBLE.”
- Best Rap/Sung Performance: “LOYALTY.” (Kendrick Lamar Featuring Rihanna)
- 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2016)
- Best Rap Album: To Pimp A Butterfly
- Best Rap Performance: “Alright”
- Best Rap Song: “Alright”
- Best Music Video: “Bad Blood” (Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar)
- Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: “These Walls” (Kendrick Lamar Featuring Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercat)
- 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards (2015)
- Best Rap Performance: “i”
- Best Rap Song: “i”
So, how are Grammy Award Winners picked? Well, to begin with, a Grammy isn’t as simple as selling the most records or being at the top of the chart.
Every year, artists, record labels, and distributors submit recordings, albums, and music videos released during a specific time frame. For the 2026 Grammy Awards, that period ran from August 31, 2024, to August 30, 2025. Any music released outside that timeframe must wait until the following year’s awards. Once submissions are received, specialists review them to ensure they meet eligibility requirements and are placed in the appropriate categories for submission to voters.
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Next, the voting begins. Hundreds of music professionals—like performers, songwriters, producers, engineers, instrumentalists, and other industry experts—cast their ballots. They vote in the categories they know best, which helps pick the finalists. For more specialized categories, peer groups of professionals in those fields are used to narrow down nominees before a final round of voting.
Once the nominees are set, members cast a second round of ballots to determine the winners. These results are then independently tabulated by Deloitte before being sealed until Grammy night. While the whole process is designed to reward artistic achievement, that hasn’t stopped speculations and debate over the years. Just ask Kendrick Lamar fans, who still remember the 2014 Best Rap Album race as one of the most controversial Grammy decisions and among other artists as well.
It’s hard to say, but mostly not anytime soon. By reaching 27 Grammy Awards, Kendrick Lamar has already moved above Jay-Z’s 25 wins and created that gap in between that will be difficult for anyone in hip-hop to keep up, so who knows? Kanye West sits not far behind, but the pace required to catch Lamar would demand multiple award-winning album cycles and years of continued success. Even among other rappers like Drake, J. Cole, and Eminem, they have won across the Grammy Awards.
The more interesting question is no longer whether another rapper can catch him—it’s how high Lamar can climb on the all-time list. With 27 Grammy wins, he’s already in the company of legends such as Alison Krauss and John Williams. Ahead of him sit only a handful of music icons, including Chick Corea, Sir Georg Solti, Quincy Jones, and Beyoncé. Considering Lamar is still releasing critically acclaimed music and collecting awards at a remarkable rate, the idea of him moving further up the rankings feels less like wishful thinking and more like a genuine possibility. For the first time in his career, Kendrick Lamar isn’t chasing rap history anymore. He’s chasing music history.
